Since the publication of Robert Pianta's 2001 handbook on the quality of the teacher-student relationship, much has been accomplished and research contributions have multiplied from different authors and countries. This testifies to the richness and continuous evolution of this field of research. The quality of the teacher-student relationship has been recognized as an important factor in the psychological development of students and seems to increase their adjustment to the school context. A good quality of relationship, according to attachment theorists, is characterized by closeness, affection, and respect. In this direction, the teacher can offer a relational context that can support the child in their learning processes and psychological development, preventing negative outcomes. The research focused on defining the salient features of this educational relationship and refining tools that could collect the perceptions of students and teachers, trying to identify the possible outcomes associated and the mechanisms involved.

This book argues for the importance of connectedness in student-teacher relationships during adolescence and advocates a more holistic and proactive approach to wellbeing in education. Combining education, psychology and health promotion perspectives, the book begins by providing an overview of theoretical frameworks in the study of student-teacher relationships and makes the case that good relationships with teachers are essential to students’ well-being in school. The book then goes on to present the concept of connectedness and discusses the main challenges regarding its conceptualisation in school research. García-Moya draws on qualitative findings from the Teacher Connectedness Project to offer an in-depth examination of the central attributes of student-teacher connectedness, as well as of the links between connectedness and authority from both students’ and teachers’ perspectives. This innovative project uses a synergistic approach to investigate the role of teachers as potential significant adults in students’ lives. The final chapter offers a summary of the key practical implications for teachers and educators and makes recommendations for future research directions in this area. This book will be a valuable resource for researchers and educators alike, as well as for anyone interested in the ongoing concerns about student wellbeing in schools.

For more than two decades, the concept of student engagement has grown from simple attention in class to a construct comprised of cognitive, emotional, and behavioral components that embody and further develop motivation for learning. Similarly, the goals of student engagement have evolved from dropout prevention to improved outcomes for lifelong learning. This robust expansion has led to numerous lines of research across disciplines and are brought together clearly and comprehensively in the Handbook of Research on Student Engagement. The Handbook guides readers through the field’s rich history, sorts out its component constructs, and identifies knowledge gaps to be filled by future research. Grounding data in real-world learning situations, contributors analyze indicators and facilitators of student engagement, link engagement to motivation, and gauge the impact of family, peers, and teachers on engagement in elementary and secondary grades. Findings on the effectiveness of classroom interventions are discussed in detail. And because assessing engagement is still a relatively new endeavor, chapters on measurement methods and issues round out this important resource. Topical areas addressed in the Handbook include: Engagement across developmental stages. Self-efficacy in the engaged learner. Parental and social influences on engagement and achievement motivation. The engaging nature of teaching for competency development. The relationship between engagement and high-risk behavior in adolescents. Comparing methods for measuring student engagement. An essential guide to the expanding knowledge base, the Handbook of Research on Student Engagement serves as a valuable resource for researchers, scientist-practitioners, and graduate students in such varied fields as clinical child and school psychology, educational psychology, public health, teaching and teacher education, social work, and educational policy.

This book presents a potential hierarchy between the three basic psychological needs central to Self-Determination Theory (SDT). Findings from the author’s research suggest that the motivation to exercise autonomy is an outcome that is cumulatively influenced by the perceived quality of the teacher-student relationship and students’ perceived competence within specific learning contexts and with a specific teacher. These findings are the basis for three hypotheses regarding students’ motivation to engage with learning activities. The first is that perceived competence is informed by and reciprocally informs the quality of the teacher-student relationship. The second is that students’ perceived competence and the quality of the teacher-student relationship have a combined impact upon students’ autonomous motivation. The final posit is that a teacher can be autonomy supportive both prior to and during activities where students have opportunities to exercise their autonomy. Such autonomy support includes the influence of teacher feedback upon students’ perceived competence and their subsequent motivation to autonomously engage with learning activities. This research begins to unravel such motivational interplay through an SDT-informed model, which is used as the basis for discussing the specific influence of teacher feedback and autonomy support upon students’ engagement with learning activities in formal learning settings. The findings and model are worthy of further testing and development, as part of the wider agenda of student engagement, wellbeing and positive psychology prevalent in educational research, education psychology, and the philosophy of social motivation.

For elementary teachers, the importance of developing quality relationships with their students cannot be overstated. This paper reviews the literature on student-teacher relationship quality (STRQ), including how it is conceptualized and measured, theorized factors that influence it, and its observed impacts. This is primarily examined from the lens of attachment theory, as it dominates the research of student-teacher relationships (STRs) for children in kindergarten through fifth grade. Trends in findings are discussed with particular attention to students who historically have been marginalized and have experienced lower-quality relationships with their teachers. I conclude that high-quality STRs are an important aspect of pursuing educational justice and offer strategies for teachers to develop such relationships. Implications for future research are also discussed.